All around them lay scattered rubble and bricks.
Lynn and Vergo stood amid it, facing each other.
Both were bare-handed, both radiated a suffocating sense of pressure.
Yet upon closer inspection, it was easy to see that the pressure they exuded was completely different.
Vergo's entire body was wrapped in black Armament Haki without a single gap. His presence was calm and steady, like an inconspicuous bomb—ordinary at first glance, yet containing unimaginable destructive power.
Lynn, on the other hand, was surrounded by surging frost mixed with black Armament Haki, leaving streak after streak of black-and-white "scratches" in the air. His presence was violent and savage, openly displaying its wild arrogance!
The two utterly different auras collided, and even space itself seemed to twist.
"Tch. Boring."
Vergo looked at Lynn, who was surrounded by a black-and-white storm, and sneered. "If you were a Paramecia Devil Fruit User, I might be a little more wary. After all, Paramecia abilities can be quite strange."
"But you're a Zoan. Even if you're a Mythical Zoan, you're still using a Zoan Devil Fruit."
Vergo said slowly, "A Zoan can only change its user. No matter how fierce that storm around you is, it ultimately can't cause any real damage. Just like your cold air earlier, at most it gave me goosebumps."
"You're playing tricks." Vergo stared intently at Lynn, seemingly searching for proof of his fear.
"Pre-battle speeches are so boring, Vergo!"
Lynn laughed loudly. "You know, in an arena, that wouldn't get the crowd fired up at all!"
"You should do it like this—"
Lynn extended a fist and raised his thumb, then turned it downward at Vergo as he laughed.
"Sixty seconds. I'll put you on the ground!"
Energy Value: 1000/1800.; Hero Skill: Icebound Domain—Armament Form: Completely abandons the defensive properties of Armament Haki, greatly increasing speed and strength. Consumes ten Energy Value per second!
After Lynn delivered his pre-battle declaration,
the deserted street fell utterly silent.
Then, a piece of rubble suddenly hit the ground.
Clack.
At that instant, Lynn and Vergo seemed to receive the signal to begin, both launching attacks at each other's vital points!
Lynn threw a fist wrapped in frost and Armament Haki.
Vergo, meanwhile, extended only one finger.
Marine Six Powers—Shigan!
This was Vergo's hidden killing move. He had thought that dealing with a rookie who could not even use Armament Haki would never require such effort, but too many things had exceeded his expectations. He wanted to end the battle as quickly as possible!
Shigan concentrated the strength of the entire body into the index finger, then used the hardened finger to thrust at extreme speed. Its fingertip possessed the striking power of a bullet, easily piercing flesh and even steel.
His Armament Haki-coated index finger shot straight for Lynn's throat!
But this was exactly the moment Lynn had been waiting for!
Vergo's Shigan was one of his signature techniques, and Lynn naturally knew it well. He had been wary of it throughout their previous fight, and now he had finally gotten his chance.
The instant Lynn's fist crossed paths with Vergo's Shigan, Lynn suddenly opened his hand and seized Vergo's finger.
Then Lynn twisted around, hoisted Vergo's arm over his shoulder, and slammed him toward the ground!
Vergo had no time to react and could only use Rokushiki's Tekkai to withstand it head-on.
Boom!
Lynn slammed Vergo into the ground, but the throw did not injure Vergo. Instead, it gave him an opening. He braced himself with one hand and kicked at Lynn's neck!
Compared to his fists, Vergo's kicks were swifter and more dangerous, yet Lynn had never once considered dodging.
In terms of pure strength alone, Vergo, with his entire body hardened in Armament Haki, was clearly a level above Lynn.
Lynn's only advantage against Vergo was the extreme speed of his technique under Icebound Domain's Armament Form!
Lynn suddenly stomped down with his right foot, sinking half his lower leg into the ground. At the same time, he raised his left forearm, grabbed his left wrist with his right hand, and forcibly blocked Vergo's kick with his left forearm.
Then Lynn clenched his right hand into a fist and smashed it viciously into Vergo's face!
Bang!
Vergo gritted his teeth and continued using Armament Haki hardening to block Lynn's attacks. He had wanted to use that kick to widen the distance between them, but Lynn had forcibly dragged him into close-quarters combat, where Vergo was at a severe disadvantage.
And all of this had been part of Lynn's plan.
In close-quarters combat, Vergo had three main moves—
Fists, Shigan, and kicks.
Against Shigan, Lynn chose to use its momentum for a shoulder throw!
Against kicks, Lynn chose to block them head-on, then counter with a punch!
As for fists?
The increasingly suppressed Vergo roared, slapped the ground with one hand, and sprang up. His other hand clenched into a fist and drove straight into Lynn's chest!
Bang!
Lynn gritted his teeth as blood seeped from between them.
I can't give him a chance to recover!
Having made up his mind, Vergo clenched both fists. Heavy punches wrapped in black Armament Haki rained down on Lynn, blow after blow.
Lynn, meanwhile, completely abandoned defense. Frost and Armament Haki wrapped around both his fists as he launched punch after punch in retaliation against Vergo!
As for fists, in the field he excelled at most, Lynn chose without hesitation to trade blows head-on!
Bang bang bang bang bang!
Their four fists crossed repeatedly, moving so fast they left afterimages.
Both bodies endured the other's heavy blows while their feet dug into the ground, each struggling with all their strength to remain standing!
Low growls rose from their throats.
"Ver—go!"
"Lynn—Ba—rek!"
Bang!
Bang!
Each of them took a heavy punch to the face, yet their eyes remained locked on one another.
"What heavy fists!"
The same thought arose in both their minds, though Vergo had one more thought.
This guy's punches can hurt me even while I'm using Armament Haki!
I can't drag this out. I need to end it quickly.
"Die!"
Vergo extended his index finger, and Shigan shot forth again.
Lynn once again turned his fist into an open palm, catching Vergo's finger at a speed nearly invisible to the naked eye, then immediately used the momentum for a shoulder throw!
Vergo's face twisted in midair. He suddenly kicked hard with both legs, using Geppo, one of the Rokushiki techniques, to slightly shift the direction of Lynn's force. He broke free of Lynn's hold and delivered a heavy kick toward the back of his neck!
The strike was incredibly fast, but Lynn relied on his superhuman neural reflexes to react in time.
According to the previous plan—
A kick meant block!
And block meant strike!
Bang!
He used his already swollen and numb left arm to block the kick, then followed with an uppercut that landed squarely in Vergo's abdomen amid Lynn's furious roar!
This is exactly what I was waiting for! Vergo thought.
In a ground battle, it was now impossible to widen the distance between himself and Lynn. No matter what move he used, Lynn would immediately close in and entangle him in close combat.
But the world was three-dimensional, after all.
If the ground was unfavorable, then there was still the sky!
Geppo, one of the Marine Six Powers, allowed a person to walk through the air as if stepping up stairs.
If he used Geppo to get into the sky, he could widen the distance between himself and Lynn!
Using Lynn's uppercut as momentum, Vergo immediately activated Geppo. Enduring the pain in his abdomen, he kicked several times through the air and flew upward.
"Hah, this will do."
Vergo took a deep breath. "That technique of his can't possibly be maintained for long. Once his stamina is exhausted, victory will be mine."
Yet in the next second, a shadow suddenly appeared above Vergo, blocking out the light overhead.
"If you want my head, Lynn Barek's head, then come take it yourself."
"Does JOKER enjoy meddling in other people's affairs from the shadows that much?"
"Standing high above everyone else? Watching it all like a show?"
"What do you think ordinary people's fates are to you?!"
Vergo looked up and saw only a heel wrapped in a black-and-white storm crashing heavily down at him.
"It's actually this fast..."
That was the only thought Vergo had before Lynn, who had leapt into the air, kicked him straight toward the ground!
Lynn's roar rang through the air.
"Whether it's you or JOKER—"
"Get down there!"
Hero Skill: Dragon's Rage.
Bang!
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